In This Issue:
- Local Women's Disability History: You Should Know About Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins
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Be A Changemaker - Easy Ways To Make A Positive Impact
- Advocating For Change - IDD Awareness Day 2024
- Tell Congress - Invest In Child Care For Children With Disabilities
- Ensure Wheelchair Users Can Fly With Dignity - Share Your Input
- Housing Resource Fair - April 3
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Share Your Views In A Survey About Housing Denver Residents With IDD
- See You At People First On April 3
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Developmental Disability Awareness Month & Women's History
You Should Know About Local Trailblazer Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins
Both Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month and Women's History Month are commemorated every March. Colorado is rich in history about changemakers who have and are moving disability rights forward. Women who have elevated disability rights are among the most powerful historic figures.
Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins helped to get the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990.
Jennifer said she is proud of how far the country has come but there is still more work to be done, according to CBS 4 Denver. “It was a really hot day in March, it was like 80 degrees," Jennifer remembers. "When I decided to do the Capitol Crawl, I wanted to represent all the kids with disabilities and not just my generation but futures generations of kids with disabilities."
She was only eight years old when she got out of her wheelchair on the steps of the U.S. Capitol with other advocates trying to push the ADA to become law. Diagnosed six years before with cerebral palsy, she and her family quickly became active in the fight for disability rights across the country. Since the law was enacted, she has called Colorado home.
Jennifer is co-author of All The Way To The Top, a children’s book about the experience.
The book is available to checkout at Jefferson County Public Library by clicking here.
Read more about Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins on her website by clicking here.
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The Arc-JCCGC’s Be A Changemaker DDAM Outreach Campaign is all about protecting human dignity, encouraging belonging, and upholding the rights of all people with IDD.
It features easy action items to help make the world a better place for people who have IDD and everyone else.
Here are two Be A Changemaker actions to encourage positive change to increase understanding and build community:
Employ Or Encourage Your Employer To Hire People With Disabilities Because When the Focus Shifts From Disability To Ability, Everyone Benefits. People With Disabilities
are extraordinary problem solvers, have well-defined skills that are of great benefit, are often loyal employees and more. Check out this video about the advantages of hiring a person with IDD: The Arc US: Say Yes!
Know About Ableism – In Its Many Forms - And Help Eliminate It. The Arc U.S.’s recent blog, He Isn't Worth Helping, shares gut-wrenching stories of health care discrimination against people with IDD. From denying treatment to discounting pain, people are being refused life-saving and routine care at disproportionately high rates. To read more, click here.
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Advocating for Change: IDD Awareness Day 2024
People with intellectual and developmental disabilities, their friends, families, and other allies, gathered at the Colorado State Capitol on March 20 for Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day to help our legislators understand both the challenges we face and the opportunities we deserve to fully participate in the community.
Our chapter’s team members Brent Belisle, Jilda Falco, Jessica Shouse, and Lori Ropa attended, and the event was hosted by The Arc of Colorado, JFK Partners, and Alliance.
Molly Kirkham, self-advocate and president of People First of Jefferson County and Speaking For Ourselves Colorado, and a proud member of The Arc -Jefferson, Clear Creek & Gilpin Counties, gave a powerful speech at the IDD Awareness Day Luncheon, encouraging people to get involved in public policy to make positive change in issues that impact their lives. She highlighted some bills that could have positive impact on our community and urged legislators to support them.
Molly spoke about three important bills which would protect the rights of people with disabilities:
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Equal Access to Public Meetings (HB24-1168) – a bill that ensures that everyone can participate effectively in public meetings.
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Uniform Guardianship & Conservatorship Act (SB24-136) – a bill that will enhance the protection of rights of people who have guardians.
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Colorado Disability Opportunity Office (HB24-1360) – a bill that creates a permanent office so that disability issues and innovative solutions can be better addressed statewide. Molly also provided testimony in support of this bill during the hearing that same afternoon.
“These bills don’t just affect people with disabilities. They affect everybody,” Molly said. “Do you know that in Colorado, 20 percent of people have a disability? If you take in count the support person - family members and supports - that’s over half the population that’s affected by people with disabilities, or by these bills.”
The Arc has been advocating with and for people with IDD and their families for more than 60 years.
Our strength is in the voices of people with IDD themselves and we are incredibly proud of all we’ve been able to accomplish together.
A video and recap of Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities Awareness Day is available on Alliance's website by clicking here.
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Tell Congress - Invest In Child Care For Children With Disabilities
Families across the country are struggling to find and afford child care, and centers are struggling to stay open. Half of the country lives in child care deserts, where the number of kids under age five far exceeds the number of child care slots. It’s hurting families and our economy.
Families of children with disabilities face even greater obstacles to finding care because many child care programs don’t know how or are afraid to include children with disabilities. In fact, families of children with disabilities are three times more likely to experience job disruptions because of problems with child care.
To address the child care crisis, we need:
- Significant federal investment in training child care workers on how to effectively include children with disabilities in child care programs
- Greater collaboration between child care and disability services agencies
- Additional oversight of the anti-discrimination laws that protect children with disabilities in child care settings.
We need Congress to make child care a priority NOW!
Join The Arc as we build a larger, stronger movement of people with disabilities, parents, siblings, and allies to advocate for the full inclusion and civil rights of all people. Take action now! Send an email to your officials with one click.
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Ensuring Wheelchair Users Can Fly With Dignity
Share Your Input
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is seeking public comments on a new proposed rule designed to ensure airline passengers who use wheelchairs can travel safely and with dignity.
An estimated 5.5 million Americans use a wheelchair, and many encounter barriers when it comes to air travel. In 2023, 11,527 wheelchairs and scooters were mishandled by carriers required to report data to DOT.
The proposed rule would set new standards for prompt, safe, and dignified assistance; require enhanced training for airline employees and contractors who physically assist passengers with disabilities and handle passengers’ wheelchairs; and specify actions that airlines must take to protect passengers when a wheelchair is damaged during transport.
Notably, the proposed rule would require airlines to provide passengers with two options to repair or replace their wheelchairs if mishandled by the airline. The two options are:
- The carrier handles the repair or replacement of the wheelchair with one that has equivalent or greater function and safety within a reasonable timeframe and pays the associated cost.
- The passenger arranges the repair or replacement of the wheelchair with one that has equivalent or greater function and safety through their preferred vendor and the airline pays the associated costs.
In addition, the proposed rule would make it easier for DOT to hold airlines accountable when they damage or delay the return of a wheelchair to its owner by making it an automatic violation of the Air Carrier Access Act to mishandle wheelchairs.
As part of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, DOT is also requesting input on two topics not currently included in the proposal: lavatory size on twin-aisle aircrafts and reimbursement of the fare difference between a flight someone could've taken if their wheelchair fit in the aircraft and the more expensive flight they had to take instead.
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Housing Resource Fair - April 3
A Housing Resource Fair is being hosted by U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen. People who are seeking assistance with housing options, financial support, or other housing-related matters may connect with experts and explore housing resources and information at this event.
What: Housing Resource Fair
Where: City Park Rec Center: 10455 Sheridan Blvd., Westminster
When: Wednesday, April 3 – 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
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Housing Denver Residents With IDD Survey
Interested in sharing your views about Denver Metro area housing access for people with IDD?
The Kelsey is collecting information to understand barriers to housing for people with IDD for a Builder’s Assessment with the City and County of Denver Human Services Department Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Equitable Access to Services (IDDEAS) program.
As part of the project The Kelsey is conducting a survey for people to share their experiences and ideas around housing to understand current barriers and thinking about future solutions to housing people with IDD. The Kelsey is a non-profit organization, focusing on building opportunity through inclusivity and pioneering disability-forward housing solutions that open doors to homes and opportunities for everyone,
The survey should take about 20 minutes to complete, information can be provided anonymously, and most questions are optional. Please forward the survey to others whose voices are important to understanding current barriers and thinking about future solutions to housing people with IDD.
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Be Heard, Be Empowered: Join us at People First on April 3
People First is a group of self-advocates and Arc advisors that focuses on making positive changes in our community, becoming stronger self-advocates, and supporting each other.
Join us for a meeting and:
- Connect with a group of friendly people
- Build valuable self-advocacy skills
- Have your voice heard in a supportive and inclusive environment where every opinion matters.
And guess what? It's not just informative – it's a blast!
Our People First gatherings happen every first Wednesday of the month from 5:30 – 7 p.m. You can join us in person at The Arc-JCCGC's office in Lakewood, or hop on Zoom from the comfort of your own space.
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Date: Wednesday, April 3rd
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Time: 5:30 - 7:00 p.m.
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Location: In Person at The Arc's Office, 13949 W. Colfax Ave, #102, Lakewood
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Virtual Option: Can't make it in person? Join us on Zoom.
For more information on People First and how you can be a part of this incredible community: click here
Looking forward to seeing you soon!
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